How to Have an Organized Car

It just takes a few minutes to have an organized car and get it ready for a road trip.

If you are like most people, you will be taking a vacation at some point this summer and toting your kids all around town while they are not in school. This means you will be spending lots of extra time in your car. Here are some ideas to have an organized car ready to go!

Steps to Have an Organized Car

1. Toss Out the Trash

According to one study, 60% of Americans eat in their cars. An equally high number drive around with trash in their cars from their lunchtime meals and kids’ snacks. So the first step to getting your car road ready would be to throw away trash. After the initial clean out, keep a trash bag in your car and use it! Toss the bag when it gets full and replace it right away with a new one. Teach your family members and friends to use it as well.

2. Remove Unnecessary Items

Once you have the trash out, take any unnecessary items out of your car. Take out loose change, extra clothes, sports equipment from last season, anything with your address on it in case thieves break in, and things you won’t use for the next month. Put everything that belongs in your house into a box. Take the box inside and put everything away where it belongs.

3. Give Your Car a Bath

Now you should have a clean slate! Either detail your car well yourself or have someone do it for you. Having a vacuumed and dusted car with clean windows will give you incentive to keep it clean.

4. Get a Car Organizer if it Will Help You Have an Organized Car

Now that it is clean, the last step is to look into getting a car organizer. I am sometimes not the biggest advocate of buying organizational supplies because they usually end up as clutter. But a car is a little different in that if you don’t have pockets to put necessities in, those items (like a flashlight, first aid kit, umbrella, maps, etc.) will end up on the floor of the car and make a mess. So to get things up off the floor and to keep them from rolling around in your trunk, often the best solution is an organizational gadget that will keep your things neat.

One example I like that hangs on the back of the driver or passenger seat is this one.

If you have a hard time finding room in your garage to park your car, you can read this post on how to organize lawn supplies. I hope you find this helpful. What other tips do you have to organize your car?